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'Don't do God' Alastair Campbell praises Pope Francis

Tony Blair's former Director of Communications has praised Pope Francis for highlighting inequality between the rich and the poor.

Alastair Campbell, who famously said "we don't do God" when Mr Blair was asked by an interviewer about his religious faith, makes his remarks in an article in The Tableton the Pope's media profile by ITN newsreader, Julie Ethingham.

Mr Campbell said: "I'm aware he is developing an important voice on the issue of equality and inequality within and between nations. That is a huge issue and he's good at it. The Catholic Church in the UK should be more aggressively in that space."

He added that a key to the Pope's success has been social media which is a "great boon to people who communicate authentically."

In the same article BBC newsreader Huw Edwards also praised Francis. "From the moment he greeted the vast crowd [after his election] in St Peter's Square with a casual 'Buona Sera', the new Pope sent a strong message to the world's media," he said. "They knew they had a very different Pope to deal with. It's a gift to be able to appear relaxed and quietly confident in all circumstances and Pope Francis makes it look effortless - and this in turn affects the media mindset."